Thursday, June 17, 2010

EP of the Day, 6/17/10: Bowman-B Sides


Back in 2004, Bowman (named after frontman and chief songwriter Bill Bowman) released Living to Dream, one of that year's best power pop albums, and had this blog been in existence then it would have easily made that year's top 20, if not top 10. Mixing influences such as Jason Falkner, Myracle Brah and Del Amitri, Living to Dream is a must-have for power pop fans. But after making that splash, we've heard nothing from Bowman until very recently, when we got two pieces of good news. First, they're back in the studio working on a followup, and second, they've released a 6-song EP of B-sides from the Living to Dream sessions.

Let's just start off by saying that these "B-sides" are better than most bands' A-sides. "Right in Front of Me" is a rocking track that sounds just "modern" enough to warrant radio play; "Bye, Bye, Bye" is classic Matthew Sweet-styled power pop; "Learn How to Feel" is where the Del Amitri comparisons come in, and "Jump a Little Lighter" is a well-executed power ballad. It's good to have Bowman back.

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